Except “The Lady Vanishes" is a classic, beautifully written and acted, and a pleasure to watch. “Transsiberian" basically isn't. I didn't have an issue with twists rather the massive implausibilities and unconvincing behaviour of the main characters. A disappointment following Brad Anderson's previous, intriguing and quietly impressive films.
Transsiberian scores a lot of points early on. Two missionaries take the train from China to Moscow riding through evocative landscapes and meeting a younger but more road-tested couple that may or may not be a threat to their existence. Plenty of suspense and ambiguity around that, with strong performance from Woody Harrelson (atypically naive and goofy) and Emily Mortimer. In the second act, things go pear-shaped and we're very pleasantly in Hitchcock territory, especially once Ben Kingsley's dangerous Russian cop boards the train. But then, act 3. Well. That's when the train kind of literally goes off the rails and the film devolves into action thriller nonsense. Worse, it implies things that are then not followed up on, and it completely loses its moral center. The wrong people are rewarded and punished, and it's not about making a point. It just feels completely untethered from its own internal logic and ethics. Could have been great, but they fumbled it in the end.
Anyone who found Transsiberian film too far fetched should definitely not watch Hitchcock's 'The Lady Vanishes'. I thought this was really good - there was really only one twist, so I don't understand how that could be too many.
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dombrewer
Except “The Lady Vanishes" is a classic, beautifully written and acted, and a pleasure to watch. “Transsiberian" basically isn't. I didn't have an issue with twists rather the massive implausibilities and unconvincing behaviour of the main characters. A disappointment following Brad Anderson's previous, intriguing and quietly impressive films.Siskoid
Transsiberian scores a lot of points early on. Two missionaries take the train from China to Moscow riding through evocative landscapes and meeting a younger but more road-tested couple that may or may not be a threat to their existence. Plenty of suspense and ambiguity around that, with strong performance from Woody Harrelson (atypically naive and goofy) and Emily Mortimer. In the second act, things go pear-shaped and we're very pleasantly in Hitchcock territory, especially once Ben Kingsley's dangerous Russian cop boards the train. But then, act 3. Well. That's when the train kind of literally goes off the rails and the film devolves into action thriller nonsense. Worse, it implies things that are then not followed up on, and it completely loses its moral center. The wrong people are rewarded and punished, and it's not about making a point. It just feels completely untethered from its own internal logic and ethics. Could have been great, but they fumbled it in the end.MartRJ
Anyone who found Transsiberian film too far fetched should definitely not watch Hitchcock's 'The Lady Vanishes'. I thought this was really good - there was really only one twist, so I don't understand how that could be too many.mabu mabu
Too many twists!VETTE1
Enjoyed the first hour and a half. Then the movie got a bit too far fetched for me. Worth a watch overall